Maintain a safety net for needy

Many of us who were anxiously awaiting the release of Gov. Tom Corbett’s budget for 2011-12 were relieved when it appeared that, for the most part, funding for health and human services seemed to have been spared the budget ax. Certainly, there were disappointments; the zeroing out of funds for the Human Service Development Fund and Family Centers were tough pills to swallow, but it could have been much worse. After all, this was a budget where $4 billion in cuts had to be found.

However, that sense of relief is now turning to uncertainty and doubt as advocates for restoring cuts to higher education have begun to ramp up their lobbying efforts. It didn’t take long to see just how effective their advocacy would be.

Jan Murphy’s article in The Patriot-News (March 24) was a cold dose of reality to those of us who felt we’d dodged a bullet. The article began with the following sentence: “At times, it was hard to determine who was making the pitch for restoring state aid to higher education — the chancellors or the lawmakers.” This is just one example of what appears to be a growing bipartisan effort to restore funding for education, particularly higher education. Recognizing the important role education plays in our commonwealth, a legitimate case for restoration of the funds can certainly be made.

But if funding for education is to increase, something else in the governor’s budget has to decrease. My fear, and the fear of a large number of people who are concerned about maintaining the safety net of critical human services in our communities, is the cuts are going to come from the proposed budget of the Department of Public Welfare.

In many ways, DPW funding is an easy target; it makes up more than 43 percent of the state budget, more than double the amount allocated for education. Additionally, it doesn’t seem to have legislative backers who are as passionate about its mission as the advocates for higher education seem to be.

I also think there is a negative connotation attached to the concept of welfare. I believe when many people hear the word — welfare — they think of people on the dole; people who receive money from taxpayers without contributing meaningfully to our society. But cash assistance payments make up a small part of the funds distributed by DPW. Look at it this way: If the total DPW budget was equal to one dollar, cash assistance would make up only seven cents of that dollar.

In reality, the largest portion of the DPW budget (52 percent) is directed to underwriting Medicaid, a federally mandated service, and 72 percent of Medicaid funding is spent on the elderly and disabled.

People are often surprised to learn that 70 percent of the nursing home beds in the commonwealth are paid for through Medicaid. DPW funds also are used to underwrite the costs for mental health services, child development and programs for the developmentally disabled, child care and the homeless.

The safety net of human services in central Pennsylvania is fragile, and significant cuts in the services provided by DPW will have a detrimental impact on the quality of life for our neighbors and friends. We estimate at least half of our partner agencies receive some form of funding from DPW. Some examples follow:

Almost 25 percent of the budget of the YWCA of Greater Harrisburg consists of funding from DPW. That includes almost 50 percent of its revenues to operate its violence intervention and prevention program and significant allocations for its child care and employment training services.

DPW funding also helps ensure the NHS Stevens Center can offer services to help maintain emotionally challenged children in their homes and schools. DPW also allocates about $12 million to UCP of Central PA so it can keep intellectually disabled people out of institutions by providing home and community-based programs.

Clearly, these are tough times in Pennsylvania and the reality of a multibillion dollar budget shortfall means difficult choices have to be made. I wholeheartedly agree with Gov. Corbett when he says providing a helping hand to those in need is a core function of government.

I hope our Legislature will take its cue from the governor and see DPW funding as not only a core function of government, but the right thing to do for our friends and neighbors who need our help and support the most.

JOSEPH CAPITA is president and CEO of the United Way of the Capital Region.